‘Things like that happen for a reason:’ How Landen Miree’s impromptu first visit to Tempe led to the prospect joining the Sun Devils

(Courtesy of 247Sports)

When four-star tight end prospect Landen Miree landed in Phoenix from his home in Ohio, Miree did what anyone would do with a long layover at an airport. Look for a cure for the boredom.

However, unlike most who would grab a snack, watch a movie, or simply walk from gate to gate, Miree decided to message his recruiting representative to ask to get in contact with Arizona State football coaches. 

“I didn’t know nothing about ASU,” Miree said. “I wanted to go to ASU and see what it’s about.”

Although Miree was headed to Oregon for an official visit before his junior season, his representative contacted Arizona State football’s tight ends coach Jason Mohns, who soon wrapped up his workout at a gym near the facility to host Miree at the team’s facility.

“We didn’t have a chance to roll the red carpet out for him,” Mohns said. “It was just ‘this is who we are. This is what we were doing.’ And we connected.”

Miree’s visit to Tempe only lasted 30 minutes, as he needed to return to the airport with his mom to visit Oregon. 

During the visit, Mohns and Miree went through his film to get a better understanding of his game.

“We saw a lot of similarities to (former tight end Chamon Metayer)’s game,” Mohns said. “He’s got the natural ability to sink his hips and generate power from the ground.”

As Metayer gets set to begin his professional career, Miree will more than certainly be looking to replicate the success of his predecessor. 

The spur of the moment connection between Miree and Mohns also showcases how important it is to build and maintain relationships in the modern age of college football.

“This is such a relationship business,” Mohns said. “Sometimes things like that happen for a reason.”

The short interview certainly benefited Mohns and Miree, as Miree was offered a scholarship on the spot.

Despite not even having ASU on his radar, Miree soon moved them into one of his top schools on his list.

“People that get around our place, and get around our people and feel our culture, for some people that’s different and it sticks,” Mohns said. “Those are the people we want here. We want people to come here and get in our building and are like ‘that’s where I want to be.’”

While Miree still went on his visit to Oregon, he would choose Tempe as the place to start his collegiate career, as he took multiple more visits, including a visit to the now-famed win over BYU in the 2024 season. 

Miree’s talent delivered a school-record 27 touchdowns for Princeton High School in Hamilton, Ohio. After committing to the Sun Devils prior to his senior season, Miree led Princeton to the 2025 OHSAA Region 4 High School Football Championships semi-finals.

Just four months after ending his high school career, Miree returned to Tempe, this time permanently.

“Where I think he has the ability to become an elite guy is his ball skills and his body control,” Mohns said. “He really is a natural route runner, pass catcher. He’s not going to take the top off and run away from guys, but he’s a savvy route runner.”

Now, Miree is looking to use the attributes to develop his play and earn playing time for the Sun Devils. With his transition to Tempe, he now gets to see what Mohns is on a day-to-day basis, although Miree says he hasn’t changed since their initial meeting.

“He’s always been real laid back,” Miree said. “He can yell at you a little bit, but for the better.”

Mohns may yell at Miree for mistakes on the field, but one thing that will certainly help the 17-year-old is his frame. Standing at six-foot-four, Miree has a 79-and-half-inch long wingspan and is 250 pounds. Mohns said that Miree has gotten bigger since arriving just two months earlier.

“He’s got a long way to go,” Mohns said. “But there’s things we’ve seen even since he’s been here that make us really excited about the future if he keeps working.”

Though Miree only graduated high school at the end of December, he’s shown the work ethic needed to make the adjustment to the college game.

“We got a text Saturday night at midnight from Landon, asking why he got an MA on a route, cause he thought he did it right,” Mohns said. “That’s a kid on a Saturday night in Tempe, as a freshman, first semester away from home, and he’s not out trying to find something to do. He’s trying to find a way to get better.”

When Miree took his first visit to an ASU game, he got to watch former defensive back Javan Robinson’s historic moment with his game-sealing interception in the Sun Devils 28-23 victory over BYU in 2024

Two years later, Miree looks to begin writing his own name into ASU folklore as he says by “just getting better and better every day.”

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